True Friends
by Lady Lawson
Summary: Rachelle, Ailish and Lily are three muggleborns who starting their first year at Hogwarts. Set during The Maruaders' Era, and they are in it too. Features a Bossy McGonagall and Very Gay Dumbledore! I return all reviews!
1. Chapter 1

A/N: Welcome! This is my story, _True Friends_. It's a Harry Potter fanfic, as is obvious, but it also has a good few original characters too. It's set in Lily Evans' time at Hogwarts. Please review! I return all!

**Chapter 1: ****The Three Muggleborns**

Rachelle lounged in her room, bored of her Mother, her cat, her brother... and life in general. It was so very _boring_.

She glanced over to her computer, willing it to 'bing' as it did, whenever it received a message. Rachelle longed for her best friend, Anne, to send her a message- it would be something to distract her from the boredom which plagued her relentlessly.

Cuddles, the cat, miaowed at her, signifying that she was hungry. Rachelle ignored her, preferring to search in her drawers for some chocolate.

Just as she was about to take a huge bite of the creamy Lindt chocolate, the doorbell rang. Rachelle groaned, threw the chocolate back in her drawer, and stormed downstairs. She flung open the door to find a middle aged woman standing outside.

The fact that she was middle aged had nothing to do with Rachelle's mouth dropping open. It was more her _clothes _- a bright purple silk dress, high-heeled turquoise boots and a white knitted shawl. She was tubby, and dirty-looking- in fact, was that a worm sliding around in her hair? Rachelle stared.

'Ah, you must be Rachelle!' The odd woman remarked, pronouncing her name wrong, as everyone did.

'Rach-el.' Rachelle corrected.

'Oh, forgive me. My name is Professor Spudingta Sprout.'

Rachelle just stared at her.

'Where's your mother, dear?' Professor Spudingta Sprout asked.

'Um. I'll get her. You wait here.' Rachelle ordered.

The Sprout person ignored her, stepping swiftly into the house, just as Rachelle's Mum poked her head out of the kitchen.

'Who's th-' She stopped, gasping in amazement.

'My name is Spudingta.' Spudingta announced. 'I work at Hogwarts.'

Rachelle had never heard such odd names.

'And I am here to tell you,' continued Spudingta, 'that your daughter is a witch.'

'Get out.' Said Rachelle's Mum.

'Madam,' Spudingta said, 'No. I'm afraid it's true, everything I have said.'

'Prove it!' Rachelle's Mum said.

'Alright. Rachelle's a bit odd, isn't she?' Spudingta said. Rachelle glared at her.

'I like to say unique.' Rachelle's Mum said, looking offended.

'Whatever.' Spudingta said. 'What I mean is she does odd things, right? Like that time she set the lake on fire.'

Rachelle groaned.

'But...' Rachelle's Mum said. 'There's no such thing as witches.'

'I beg to differ, Madam. I am one, and I will prove it to you.' She pulled out her and immediately the room was filled with hamsters. Another flick of the wand, and they were gone.

()()()

Ailish gasped as the wall disappeared, and an archway opened onto a bustling street.

The rotund man- no, she thought- the rotund wizard who had brought her here smiled.

'It is truly astonishing, my dear, especially as it's your first time, eh?' The wizard was called Slughorn, and Ailish couldn't help liking him, with his slightly over-the-top mannerisms and wide smile.

'It is, sir.' She agreed. He had told her she didn't need to call him 'sir', but Ailish, who was described by her friends as the essence of politeness, couldn't possibly abstain from it.

He laughed. 'Come along, my dear. We'll first get you a wand- this here is Mr Ollivander's Wand Shop. He's the best in the business, my dear.'

'Really?' Ailish said. 'Please, sir, how do you make a wand?'

Slughorn smiled. 'Ah, well, I know it's a complicated business. I don't quite understand it myself. All I can tell you is that it's made of wood, and has a core of a magical being, such as a dragon, or a unicorn.'

'They're real too?' Ailish gaped. 'My goodness!'

They strode into the shop. It seemed empty to Ailish. She was just about to ask why it was uninhabited, when a voice came from behind her.

'Try this; beech and dragon heartstring.'

Ailish leapt out of her skin. 'Jesus Christ!'

Slughorn, and the man who was behind her, laughed.

'What an odd expression.' Said the other man, who she presumed was Ollivander.

'She's a muggleborn, Ollie.' Slughorn explained. 'I assumed it's a muggle thing.'

'Ah. Well, here you go, wave it around.' Ollivander said.

Ailish took the wand, and uncertainly waved it around.

'Nope.' Ollivander said. 'Try this, holly and phoenix feather?'

Ailish tried it again, and yet again Ollivander took it off her. The whole charade was repeated no less than twenty times before Ollivander struck gold.

'Ah, how about this, picky? Oak and Unicorn hair.'

'I love oak.' Ailish said, and took the wand. Immediately she noticed that it was warm in her hand.

'Ah, yes!' Ollivander said, beaming. 'That's the one. Oh, I _love _a challenge! Thank you so much! You've made my day!' Ailish laughed.

'Thank you, sir.'

'Oh, my pleasure, my pleasure! Off you go!'

()()()

Lily Evans bit her lip, looking around the madly busy station. Noticing a station guard, she went up to him.

'Excuse me, sir, but where can I find platform 9 and ¾?'

He snorted with laughter. 'There ain't no such platform, missy. Scoot!'

Lily, terrified now, walked away. She was so deep in thought that she walked into a tall girl with wild, curly brown hair, freckles, and blue eyes.

'Oh, I'm so sorry!' Lily exclaimed. She had knocked some books from the arms of the girl, and bent to pick them up. She glanced at the titles. _Beginner Transfiguration_.

'It's fine!' The girl said.

'You're going to Hogwarts, aren't you?' Lily exclaimed.

'Yes!' The girl said. 'I'm so glad to meet someone else! I've been searching for this 9 and ¾ platform for an hour! I'm Ailish, by the way. Do you know where it is?'

'I haven't a clue, sorry!' Lily said.

'No problem.' Ailish said.

Just then, they noticed a tall girl, with long black hair and white skin strolling through a brick wall.

'Um.' Said Ailish.

'That must be it.' Said Lily.

They walked over and stared at the wall for a few minutes.

'It looks solid.' Ailish said.

'It would be,' Lily said, 'As it's, you know, brick...?'

'You first.' Said Ailish bravely.

'You owe me a bar of Bournville chocolate.' Lily said, and, gathering her courage, walked through the wall and vanished.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2:**** True Friends**

They sat together on the train in an empty carriage.

'I'm so excited!' Ailish remarked to Lily. 'Have you heard about the sorting? Which house d'you want to be in?'

Lily grinned. 'Oh, Gryffindor, I think. Or maybe Ravenclaw?'

'I like the sound of Slytherin,' Ailish said, 'Or, like you, maybe Ravenclaw.'

Just then, the carriage door was opened, and the girl they'd seen at the station poked her head in.

'Excuse me, can I sit in here? Everywhere else is full.' She had long, black hair, and chocolate-brown eyes.

'Sure!' Lily and Ailish said together.

'I'm Rachelle.' The girl said.

'I'm Lily, and this is Ailish.' Lily introduced. Ailish smiled.

'We saw you walking through a wall at the station.'

'Really?' Rachelle smiled. 'I found out from asking a mother at the station- her name was Eileen, and she was lovely.'

Ailish laughed. 'I asked the station guard. He wasn't so nice.'

'Yeah,' Lily said, 'I asked him too- "Run along now missy!"'

Just then, the door opened again. This time there were four boys there, and they all had a look of mischief about them. Ailish looked worried.

'Hey, girlies.' One of them said. He had messy hair, and hazel eyes, framed by owl-like glasses. Rachelle stuck out her tongue at him.

'What, boys?'

One of the boys, who was short and thin, squeaked.

Ailish looked at him curiously. 'Are there mouse-people in the wizarding world, too?' She asked. It was a perfectly innocent question- so much of this was new to her that anything could be possible. However, the mouse-boy didn't see it that way.

'Shut your face, curly.' He sneered, and Ailish instinctively touched her long, brown, curly hair. 'Seriously,' he continued, 'did you get hit with a surprizzo curse?'

'Is there such a thing?' Ailish enquired, 'I'm sorry, I didn't mean to offend you. I'm muggle-born, you see.'

The boy with the messy hair laughed. 'Oh, Merlin, bet you go in Hufflepuff, I suppose the rest of you are the same?'

Rachelle glared. 'What's wrong with that, moron?'

The boy who hadn't spoken yet nudged the messy-haired boy. 'Maybe we should leave them alone, James?'

James snorted. 'For now, we will. See you later, girlies.'

Rachelle stood up and kicked him in the shin. 'Go and eat shit, Jamsie.'

He glared at her. 'I'll get you for that, Mudblood!' Lily gasped. Ailish looked confused. Rachelle, being Rachelle, kicked him again.

He limped from the carriage, followed by his friends. Lily laughed.

'You should play football, Rachelle!'

Ailish shook her head. 'It's called Quidditch in the wizarding world, actually. It sounds quite interesting. You play it on broomsticks and there are four or five balls or something like that.'

Rachelle looked interested. 'I used to play basketball back home.'

'I think it's a bit like that,' Ailish said, nodding.

()()()

After the train had stopped, the three girls got out and stood on the platform, suddenly lost in the crowds of boisterous students. Then a booming voice called, 'Firs' years, this way!'

They hurried over- and then stopped. For the voice came from a giant. Ailish squeaked.

The giant smiled down at her. ''S alri', little un! Yer a muggle-born, are yeh?'

'Yes, sir,' Ailish stammered.

'Ah, I'm Hagrid, yeh'r to call me tha', ok?'

'Um... yes, Hagrid.' Ailish murmured.

Once Hagrid was satisfied that he had all the first years together, he brought them over to some small rowing boats bobbing about on a huge lake. The girls could just see a shadowy castle from the edge of the lake. They all shivered with excitement. They got in, and at once they set off, with no effort from any of the young students. The three girls were amazed. They were in a boat with another girl, who introduced herself as Meghan. She was very nice, and told them a lot about Hogwarts. She had an older sister there, she said, and her entire family were magical.

Eventually, the boats stopped, outside a cave. They sort of beached themselves on a pebbley strand, and all the young magicians got out. Hagrid's boat creaked a bit when he got out.

Suddenly, a door appeared in the solid rock near the cave. It opened, and out stepped a tall woman, with dark hair scraped back in a severe bun, and sharp emerald eyes. Lily smirked.

'Good Evening, ladies and gentlemen.' She said, her crisp Scottish accent breaking the air like a knife. 'My name is Professor McGonagall. I am the deputy headmistress here at Hogwarts. I am in charge of punishments, discipline, and of course, I also teach Transfiguration. Come on in.'

They followed her through the door, and immediately they all knew- somehow- that they were in the castle. The room was warm and cosy, with bright lights and comfortable armchairs.

'This,' said Professor McGonagall, 'Is the waiting room. Very soon you will be brought into the Great Hall to be sorted. But before that, tidy yourselves up a bit, you look like something the cat dragged in.'

She left the room, her long black cloak sweeping behind her.

Ailish straightened her tie importantly, earning some mockery from her new friends. Professor McGonagall came in again. Her sharp eyes scanned them- they rolled- and then she nodded her head towards the door. 'Well, I suppose you'll have to do.'

They followed her out of the room into an empty hall, and then into another hall, this one packed to the brim with students of various ages. There were five tables- one horizontal, this one filled with adults, and then the other four vertical, filled with children.

The first years walked up to the platform at the top of the hall.

'Let the sorting begin.' Said a funny-looking man. He wore tight jeans, a pink, flowery shirt, and a bow tie. The first years stared.


End file.
